Help needed in Identifying WW2 Regiment from Uniform

Discussion in 'General' started by Jevs12, Sep 8, 2013.

  1. Jevs12

    Jevs12 New Member

    This is my first post so I hope this is the right place.
    I am trying to research my grandfathers ww2 history and am hoping to find which regiment he was part of. All that I know is that it's possible he was part of the Tank Regiment?
    Is it possible to tell from the uniforms in the following photos which regiment he was in?
    Thank you in advance for any help you can offer me.
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  2. bamboo43

    bamboo43 Very Senior Member

    Hi Jevs12,

    With all the clues in the first two photos, I'm thinking the cap badge worn by the men in photo 3 is the Tank Regiment badge. They are not helping by wearing the cap so far back on their heads, but it looks like the badge to me.

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  3. Jevs12

    Jevs12 New Member

    Thank you for your quick response Bamboo43. Is there anyway in which I can narrow it down to find which battalion within the Tank Regiment he was in?
    I know that he served in both Africa and Italy as we have the medals he was awarded but other than that we know nothing else of his military history.
     
  4. 4jonboy

    4jonboy Daughter of a 56 Recce

  5. chrisgrove

    chrisgrove Senior Member

    The cap badges in the first two photos are the same, but not the same as the ones in the third photo. The regimental titles in the first photo are light coloured which does not suggest Royal Tanks. The first photo seems to show 6 Armd Div patches, whereas the third photo shows the badge of an Army Tank Brigade, possibly 25th.

    The cap badges in the first two look like Grenadier Guards (unlikely) or a Fusilier Regiment, but those are infantry. Possibly a battalion of one of them converted to Recce/RAC and still wearing their old cap badge, but which one I do not know. The third pic could well be Royal Tanks as 25 ATB always contained them.

    Chris
     
  6. Staffsyeoman

    Staffsyeoman Member

    The first picture is not/not RTR; at first I thought them Grenadier Guards in the Guards Armoured Division; the vehicles are Staghound armoured cars - making it less likely to be RTR. But one figure just past centre is clearly wearing the mailed fist, white on black, of the 6th Armoured Division. Figure at left could- just could - be wearing an infantry shoulder title (white letters on red) with a Guards Armoured Division badge beneath. If only it was zoomable!

    Edit: Cross posted with the above.
     
  7. sol

    sol Very Senior Member

    Badge wear by troopers on the first two photos could be a badge of the Lothians and Border Horse. 2nd Lothians and Border Horse was in 6th Armoured Division.

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    Owen likes this.
  8. chrisgrove

    chrisgrove Senior Member

    Sounds likely. 6 Armd Div Recce Regt was 1st Derbyshire Yeomanry, but I have no idea what their badge looked like!

    Chris
     
    FrankPW likes this.
  9. Owen

    Owen -- --- -.. MOD

    agreed.
    Tom Canning in this thread said 6th Armd had their Shermans replaced in 1946 with Staghounds.
    http://ww2talk.com/forums/topic/32074-b-sqn-2nd-lothians-and-border-horse-royal-armoured-corps-argenta-gap/


     
  10. Owen

    Owen -- --- -.. MOD

  11. geoff501

    geoff501 Achtung Feind hört mit

    No one's yet suggested applying for service record? Should be possible with DOB?
     
  12. Tom Canning

    Tom Canning WW2 Veteran WW2 Veteran

    the first two photo's are indeed the C squadron the second probably late in '45 when the Tanks were replaced by Staghounds and Greyhounds and before the Lothians left 6th AD in Austria to be

    replaced by 4 QOH - who went off to Trieste and we then had the 1st Gloucesters for their first trip overseas - then 17/21st Took off for Greece and we - 16/5th Lancers went off to Lybia in the

    middle of '47.....the third photo is definitely 51st RTR in 25th TB - which became the Armoured /Engineer battalion when the 25TB was broken up at Cesena in the December of '44....the 142 RAC

    was disbanded..NIH moved over to take the place of 145th RAC of 21st TB which was also disbanded at the same time...then I joined the 16/5th Lancers being demobbed before the Lybia trip in

    '47- as Geoff suggests - Service records will give Chapter and Verse

    Cheers
     
    Owen likes this.
  13. Jevs12

    Jevs12 New Member

    Thank you all very much for all of your help and information. You have given me plenty of new leads to now follow. I will also look into trying to apply for service records
    Once again thank you all for your help.
     
  14. Tom Canning

    Tom Canning WW2 Veteran WW2 Veteran

    Jevs

    The Maple leaf on top of the Tank Diablo was awarded to 25TB for their actions in support of the 1st Canadian Division at both the Hitler and Gustav lines in the Liri Valley at the onset of the

    Operation "Diadem" of May '44 by the Cdn Corps Commander in correspondence with Brigadier Tetley - whose family had something to do with brewing beer and as a consequence every man -

    2500 in the bde was presented with a bottle of beer sent out specially from Yorkshire....while we in 21st TB also were awarded the Maple Leaf on the 1st Divs RED PATCH..for our support at the

    Gothic Line....unfortunately we didn;t have anyone associated with the beer trade so we had to make do with a glass of water.....yeuch !

    Cheers
     
  15. FrankPW

    FrankPW New Member

    I have shown these photographs to my Dad (now 92) who was a Trooper in C Sqdn 2nd Lothians and Border Horse.
    He says that the top photograph is definitely men from the 2nd Lothians. He recognises some of the faces but unfortunately cannot put a name to them ( leave it a while and he will suddenly remember). He says that the Staghounds are 'C' Sqdn (the circle on the side of the turret signifies this). He thinks that the top photograph was probably taken in Milan. Hope that this helps.
     

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